Conflict of Interest
by slashALLthedisney
Summary: Everything is changing too fast. Aurora - or is it Briar Rose? - desperately seeks to cling to something concrete as she experiences so much at once. With one horrifying action leading to another, she realizes that maybe nothing is as her aunts would have her believe. MALORA Rating is prone to change


**So one of the few good things about helping pioneer a ship is that there are few stories I can copy. It makes finding a more original prompt and story easier, and yeah, I hope I did this correctly. As promised, my Malora fanfic. This won't really follow the Disney movie or the original fairy tale I don't think. So if you're one of those "it MUST follow the xyz," then I apologize, but this may not be your cup of tea. Skip the warning, and voila, your story, my lovelies. **

**Warning: This story contains yuri/ femslashing/ girl-on-girl pairings. If you feel this would ruin your childhood or you just don't like such cutesy pairings, then gtfo. Much love otherwise 3**

The red coat floated away from her hands, carried by the breeze to rest on some patch of dirt and grass a ways away. The notes she held ascended into the canopy of leaves that shielded her from the noonday sun. Overall, they were joyous, but there laid a melancholy undercurrent to them which the forest couldn't understand.

But a certain young man did.

He sprung from his hiding place behind a tree as soon as the fair maiden spun around to pick up his fallen coat, music still ringing. He seamlessly melded his song into hers, fingers glancing over his heart.

At once, the blonde woman spun her head around and jumped, song dying in a perfect – though abruptly short – note. Her eyes, so unaccustomed to the sight of another human being aside from her three aunts, drank in his physique. His copper hair was thick and wavy, his height imposing. He looked far more muscular than she could have envisioned a person being, what with only middle-aged women and herself for comparison. His voice was a deep harmony to her melody, and he _looked _friendly enough. His smile didn't set her on edge. It was bright and white. His brown eyes seemed warm as well.

"Who…who are you?" the woman asked. Her voice didn't break like she feared it would. It was strong and steady. She backed away from the stranger and into the comforts of her beloved forest.

"You don't remember?" He chuckled and strode forward. "But we've met before. You said so yourself!"

"We have?"

"Of course – once upon a dream," he smiled and closed the distance.

_Is this…normal?_ Briar Rose thought to herself as he reached for her hands and led them in a waltz. The steps came easily to her though she had never once in her life performed with a partner. He sang to her the song she had been singing only moments before. Unease curled in Rose's stomach. This was beyond her expertise.

He began to lead her through the woods to a cliff where the trees grew sparse and the afternoon sky was a clear blue. A low branch caught his eye, and he graced his posterior on it and pulled his new capture atop it as well.

"What is your name?" he said without preamble after the woman had laid her head on his shoulder. There was deafening silence between them, and Phillip feared that his date hadn't heard him. He prepared to ask again, but the sudden chill that filled his once warm side was answer enough.

"I shouldn't be here," she said, arms rising as she pulled branches away from her face and hair.

"But when shall I see you again?" As he grabbed her arm, she flinched.

"I – oh – never," she stammered.

"Please!"

"Meet me tonight, at the cottage."

She wrested away from his grip and fled into the trees like a rabbit. Phillip stared after the gap she had disappeared into until he grew tired. He whistled for his horse who found him soon enough, and together they rode home.

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She hurried home, not caring about the berries she had been asked to gather. She and her aunts both knew it was an excuse to get her out of the house for the day. But intended surprise or no, she was determined to be back in the safety of her own home. That…man (for it certainly couldn't be a woman) was intimidating just by being in her presence. She knew nothing of the other half of her species, nor was she particularly interested save in the knowledge she could reap. Surely he was rife with new information about the outside world.

And she would know what he knew later this evening when he visited her cottage. She would ask him endless questions and learn so much. Perhaps he would take her into the cities and towns of the Kingdoms. A giddy feeling settled in Rose's body, and she felt like she was floating all the way back to her house.

Once inside, she was immediately bombarded with three "Happy birthday, Rose!" exclamations and three hugs of equal exuberance. Her aunts guided her to the table where rested a gorgeous blue dress that Rose could never imagine herself wearing and a curiously perfect cake.

"For me? How lovely," Rose said, fingers glancing over the dress's fabric. It was smooth and unblemished. It hardly seemed like something her aunts were capable of making. They had never been apt at…well, anything come to think of it. Rose shook her head and smiled wider. There was no reason to fret just yet.

"Go ahead, try it on," Fauna said as she motioned towards the dress.

"Oh, but I couldn't."

"Please, Rose? For us?" Flora asked.

"Well…" Rose glanced down at the beautiful dress, smile still wide and sincere. "If you insist."

She snatched the dress up and dashed up the stairs. She truly thought the dress was indescribably beautiful. But she had never worn something so elegant nor had she seen anything remotely close to this level of embroidery. It was most curious, but she wanted to at least try it on. Mostly for her aunts and partially to sate her own curiosity.

She observed her figure in her mirror. She had truly grown much in her sixteen years. Her golden hair cascaded down her shoulders and fell into graceful curls against her back. The dress hugged her in all the right places, and Rose was secretly proud of her physique.

When she heard Fauna's voice calling up to her, Aurora broke her thoughts off to rapidly show off her new attire. She was appropriately complimented and was quite pleased until her aunts grew quiet and averted their eyes. What was wrong? Rose thought the dress looked rather nice on her…

"Aunt Fauna? Aunt Flora, Merryweather? What's wrong?" Rose asked, bending down to their level to touch their shoulders. She went for Fauna, the eldest. "Aunt Fauna? Is it the dress?"

"Ah, no, of course not, dear," Fauna replied, shaking her head. "Just…you've grown up so fast, and now…now it's time for you to wed."

"To wed?" But…she only knew one other person. And she wasn't sure if she wanted to be his and he hers.

"Yes, dear," Flora spoke up, grabbing Rose's hand in her own two. "Since you were a child, you have been betrothed to Prince Phillip."

"A prince! But that would mean -!"

"That you would have to be a princess? Yes, you are the lost Princess Aurora of King Stephan and Queen Leah," Fauna explained.

"Then…then…I'm sorry, I can't - ," Rose choked and dashed upstairs, trying to contain the tears that threatened to overflow. It was too much. She couldn't take it all in. They were apparently under the impression that she – a lowly peasant girl who had dwelled in the woods sans human contact for nigh sixteen years – was somehow a lost princess. It was absurd, and Rose wasn't sure if she ought to believe her aunts for their sake or her own.

Then there was the matter of the stranger she had met earlier today. Would he whisk her away from here to the safety of the villages she had so desperately wished to see? Would he leave her stranded here with her aunts? Were they even her aunts? Or had they simply gone insane? Rose cried herself into a state of exhaustion eventually, and only awoke when small hands shook her shoulders.

"Rose," the voice murmured. "Rose, wake up, dear. We need to hurry."

"What? Hurry where?" Rose's voice was thick with sleep and her vision not yet cleared. She was able to make out the general shape of her Aunt Flora and blinked to clear the image.

Rose didn't respond. She was still undecided. This story her aunts were so invested in wasn't acceptable. There was no way that _she_ was a princess. She hadn't even heard of a lost princess. Then again, she wasn't really kept up to date on current events. Flora grabbed Rose's hand and pulled her to her feet to guide her downstairs. Rose, still wearing her birthday gift, followed numbly. Her aunts each had dark cloaks over their clothing and made Rose don one as well.

Rose glanced out the window. It was already dark, and that man hadn't come by yet. Perhaps he never intended to come again. She hadn't really given him any directions. This was an entire forest, for crying out loud. The odds of finding _one_ cottage were absurd. Not to mention the manner in which they had departed was, in retrospect, she supposed quite abrupt and a tad rude. No, the odds of finding him again were slim to none. Nonetheless, Rose had the urge to stay, just in case.

They began their journey to the castle in the far flung edges of the kingdom. They were a few minutes out of sight of the cottage when Rose suddenly remembered that she "forgot" to grab a favorite book back at the cottage. She waved off her aunts who insisted on following her back, but Rose insisted that she would just be a moment.

Wandering around in the dark woods was nothing to Rose. This was her home. She had passed through these woods every day for the past decade. Finding the cottage in the dim light was too easy, and Rose slipped through the door hoping to find any sign of her personal prince charming. The room was dark and void of any life. Well, aside from having been recently and rapidly vacated, it was void of any life.

"Hello?" Rose meandered inwards, trying to feel her way into the dark cabin. She gripped the back of one of the chairs that had been left to rest in the middle of the floor. "How silly," she mumbled, but then remembered that it wouldn't make a difference where the chair's final resting place for this chair was, as no one would ever venture into this cabin and call it home ever again.

It was with this sudden realization – the impact of what her aunts were trying to do and what they intended to do – that broke Rose. She sunk into the worn wooden chair and tried to contain the tears that were threatening to spill over her eyelids. What had gotten into them? Yes, Merryweather and Fauna had strong personalities, but they weren't crazy. Flora was too sweet to be completely mad. And yet, there they were, wandering about the forest in the middle of the night with some insane notion that she was _the_ princess to the royal Highnesses Stefan and Leah. It was absolutely absurd.

And perhaps crushing too, she thought, chin sinking onto her crossed forearms as she leaned onto the table. Every girl wanted to be a princess, and her aunts were mocking that standard dream. That and more personally, her desire to have parents. Yes, she loved her aunts. Of course she did. They had cared for her, raised her, talked to her about _everything_. But, she wished to know her real parents. She had often spent long nights looking up at the stars, just imagining what it would be like to meet them, or even what it would be like to have grown up with them. There was no end to the daydreams.

But now, according to her aunts, there would be no more daydreams. There would be no more "comforts of home." This was a terrifying turn of events. To have everything even _threatened_ to be ripped from her, she didn't know how to even begin to cope as the idea of not living as a peasant in the middle of the godforsaken woods have never occurred to her.

Hot tears slipped down her cheek, and Rose buried her head in her arms, shoulders shaking from the sobs that had begun to wrack her body.

She paused when she heard heavy footsteps outside. There sounded to be many of them. Having never met many people before, Rose stood from her chair and glanced around for a means of escape. The backdoor was a grace she had to use, and she raced for it, fingers undoing the latches and practically ripping the wood from its iron hinges.

As quietly as a forest born woman could, Rose disappeared into the nearby trees, pressing her back against the largest she could find. She pulled her cloak in to her body to avoid any detection, and she waited.

It…it sounded like a small army was invading her home. The lights flew on and she heard the commotion from where she hid, paralyzed. The ruckus only continued for a short while before all the lights were extinguished, and all grew quiet. But the army didn't leave. No, it stayed, and Rose was finally beginning to feel safe to move, when she heard the hoofbeats.

It was a fast, young horse, by the sounds of it. She heard a young man – the same one from earlier! He was able to find her after all! Or, the cottage at least. And whatever was inside… Did he…Was it he who sent them? Rose felt her mouth go dry with the thought. Was this…betrayal? Was that what she was feeling?

She wondered for a moment, but then snapped back to attention when she heard the cries from inside the cabin. She poked her head from around the tree to perhaps peer through the foliage, but all she saw was the bushes and trees obstructing her view, and she dared not move much more for fear of being found. No telling what was going on inside that cabin.

The sounds of struggle ensued, and Rose concluded that her new friend and the small army were not on wholly friendly terms. She heard a lot of laughter, one powerful female laugh that transcended them all, and it felt like a dream. Ice water dropped into her stomach, and Rose had to hold her breath so as not to react in any noticeable way.

Terrified, she raced away from the cabin and had scarcely gone far when her three aunts found her huddled by a small stream, sobs wracking her frame.

"There, there, dear," Fauna said. She placed a hand on her daughter's shoulder, though, soon, Rose wouldn't be her daughter anymore. No, she would a married princess and heir to the royal throne. "There was nothing you could have done."

Rose glanced up from her sobbing and at the three fairies. Truly, they were fairies! They had wings and tall hats. They waved around small wands, and they were fairies!

Rose pulled herself together. There was nothing she could do now. There was nothing to go back to. Her home was no longer safe, and she had only the guidance of her three non-aunts to guide her, and apparently that was to some life completely opposite of the one she had lived. She wiped her eyes and took a couple deep breaths, ready to leave her home. She trusted her non-aunts, but not the same as before. Not a blind trust earned by love and ignorance. No, this was a trust quickly souring into one born of uncertainty and fear. A cornered animal with nowhere to go save another corner.

With a curt nod, her small fairy surrogate parents led her towards the castle in the gathering dark.


End file.
